![]() INS Kursura underway | |
History | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Name | INS Kursura |
Builder | Sudomekh, Admiralty Shipyard, Leningrad, Soviet Union |
Launched | 25 February 1969 |
Commissioned | 18 December 1969 |
Decommissioned | 27 February 2001 |
Identification | S20 |
Fate | Museum ship at RK Beach, Visakhapatnam |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Kalvari-class submarine |
Displacement |
|
Length | 91.3 m (300 ft) |
Beam | 7.5 m (25 ft) |
Draught | 6 m (20 ft) |
Speed |
|
Range |
|
Test depth | 985 ft (300 m) |
Complement | 75 (incl 8 officers) |
Armament |
|
INS Kursura (S20) was a Kalvari-class (variant of the Foxtrot-class) diesel-electric submarine of the Indian Navy. It was India's fourth submarine. Kursura was commissioned on 18 December 1969 and was decommissioned on 27 February 2001 after 31 years of service. It participated in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, where it played a key role in patrol missions. It later participated in naval exercises with other nations and made many goodwill visits to other countries.
After decommissioning, It was dedicated to the Nation by the Chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on 9 August 2002 [1] [2] and was preserved as a museum for public access from 24 August 2002 making its final journey to Visakhapatnam on RK Beach. Kursura has the distinction of being one of the very few submarine museums to retain originality and has been called a "must-visit destination" of Visakhapatnam. Despite being a decommissioned submarine, she still receives the navy's "Dressing Ship" honour, which is usually awarded only to active ships.
Kursura has a length of 91.3 m (300 ft) overall, a beam of 7.5 m (25 ft) and a draught of 6 m (20 ft). She displaces 1,950 t (1,919 long tons) surfaced, 2,475 t (2,436 long tons) submerged and has a maximum diving depth of 985 ft (300 m). The complement is about 75, including 8 officers and 67 sailors. [3]
The submarine has three shafts, each with a six-blade propeller. She is powered by three Kolomna 2D42M diesel engines, each with 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW). She also has three electric motors, two of them with 1,350 hp (1,010 kW) and one with 2,700 hp (2,000 kW). She can achieve a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h) when on surface, 15 knots (28 km/h) when submerged and 9 knots (17 km/h) while snorkelling. She has a range of 20,000 mi (32,000 km) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) when surfaced and 380 mi (610 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) when submerged. There are 10 torpedo tubes to carry 22 Type 53 torpedoes. She could lay 44 mines instead of torpedoes. She also had a snoop tray and I-Band radar for surface search. [3]
Kursura was commissioned on 18 December 1969 at Riga, Soviet Union. She was India's fourth submarine. [4] Kursura's first commanding officer was Commander Arun Auditto. She began her maiden voyage to India on 20 February 1970. [5] During her homecoming voyage, which lasted from February to April 1970, she visited Göteborg, La Coruña, Takoradi and Mauritius. [6] Kursura, along with sister boat INS Karanj, were made operational under the Indian Navy's Western Naval Command, and reported to the Flag officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command (FOCINCWEST). They were ordered to patrol approaches to Pakistan's Karachi harbour and Makran Coast, for which they established waiting stations and submarine havens. [7]
In 1970, Karanj was badly damaged after a collision with the destroyer Ranjit when she surfaced directly below the ship. As no drawings of the damaged portions of the boat were available with the Bombay Dockyard or the Indian Navy, it was decided to use Kursura, which was already docked at Bombay, as the design template for the metal work, and Karanj was repaired within months, in time to join the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. [8]
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, Kursura operated in the Arabian Sea. She was given the patrol duties at two designated areas before the war started, but was ordered to operate under two restrictions: she was not to cross demarcated shipping corridors and she could attack a target only after positive identification. The aims of her patrol were to sink any Pakistani naval warships, to sink merchant shipping when specifically ordered, and to conduct general patrol and surveillance. [9]
She started from her home port on 13 November 1971 and reached her patrol location by 18 November. She remained there until 25 November when she was shifted to a new patrol location and remained there until 30 November. On 30 November, she rendezvoused with Karanj at sea to transfer instructions and subsequently then left for Bombay and reached there by 4 December 1971. During her patrols, she encountered fair weather and monitored a number of tankers and commercial aircraft flying on international routes. [10] She was originally intended to lay mines but the plan was later cancelled. [11]
Kursura was used for test firing the NSTL 58 torpedo in 1975. She was laid off for many years to be cannibalised for spare parts for other submarines, but underwent a refit in the Soviet Union between September 1980 and April 1982, and was made operational again in 1985. [12]
Along with INS Taragiri, she participated in the first anti-submarine warfare(ASW) training exercise with the RSS Victory of Singapore off the coast of Port Blair between 21–24 February 1994. She participated in the second ASW exercise with Singapore along with INS Dunagiri, RSS Valour and RSS Vigilance. She visited Singapore and Jakarta, Indonesia, in December 1994 on a good-will visit. [13]
After a service of 31 years and traversing 73,500 nautical miles (136,100 km; 84,600 mi), she was decommissioned on 27 February 2001. [5] Despite being a decommissioned submarine, she still receives the navy's "Dressing Ship" honour, which is usually only awarded to active ships. [14]
After decommissioning, the ship was towed to RK Beach in Visakhapatnam and was established as a museum ship, which is the first submarine museum in South Asia. The idea of the boat's conversion to a museum is credited to Admiral V Pasricha. [15] Towing the submarine 600 metres to its final location took 18 months and cost ₹ 55 million. It was converted as a museum by N. Chandrababu Naidu government launching from 9 August 2002, and it was open to the public from 24 August 2002. [5] [16] [17] Six retired naval personnel serve as guides and another one as the curator. [18]
Kursura has the distinction of being one of the very few submarine museums to retain originality. [14] She has become a famous tourist attraction of the city and has been called a "must-visit destination" of Visakhapatnam by The Hindu . [17] Out of the ₹ 10 million revenue generated every year by the museum, ₹ 8 million is used for the submarine's maintenance. During the first four months of the museum's operation, it was visited by about 93,000 people. [17] Daily visitors usually range between 500 and 600 and shoot up to 1,500 during the tourist season. [14]
In September 2007, Vice Admiral Carol M. Pottenger of the United States Navy visited the submarine when she wrote in the guestbook "What a fantastic experience. The Indian Navy should be very proud of this awesome display". She said that the submarine was very well preserved and they did not have anything similar to it in the United States. [19] A major overhaul was done in December 2007 to repair her hull's corrosion. New steel plates were arranged at a cost of ₹ 1.5 million. [14] As of August 2008, about 1.5 million people had visited the museum, [20] and in 2010, she was visited by 270,000 people. [18]
INSVikrant was a Majestic-class aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy. The ship was laid down as HMS Hercules for the British Royal Navy during World War II, but was put on hold when the war ended. India purchased the incomplete carrier in 1957, and construction was completed in 1961. Vikrant was commissioned as the first aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy and played a key role in enforcing the naval blockade of East Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
The Indian Navy (IN) is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates significantly in the Persian Gulf Region, the Horn of Africa, the Strait of Malacca, and routinely conducts anti-piracy operations and partners with other navies in the region. It also conducts routine two to three month-long deployments in the South and East China seas as well as the western Mediterranean sea simultaneously.
PNS/M Ghazi (S–130), SJ, was a Tench-class diesel-electric submarine, the first fast-attack submarine in the Pakistan Navy. She was leased from the United States Navy in 1963.
Operation Python, a follow-up to Operation Trident, was the code name of a naval attack launched on West Pakistan's port city of Karachi by the Indian Navy during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. After the first attack during Operation Trident on the Port of Karachi, Pakistan stepped up aerial surveillance of its coast as the presence of large Indian Navy ships gave the impression that another attack was being planned. Pakistani warships attempted to outsmart the Indian Navy by mingling with merchant shipping. To counter these moves, Operation Python was launched on the night of 8/9 December 1971. A strike group consisting of one missile boat and two frigates attacked the group of ships off the coast of Karachi. While India suffered no losses, Pakistani fleet tanker PNS Dacca was damaged beyond repair, and the Kemari Oil Storage facility was lost. Two other foreign ships stationed in Karachi were also sunk during the attack.
The Nilgiri-class frigates were updated versions of the Leander class, designed and built for the Indian Navy by Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai. Six ships were built between 1972–81. Vessels of the class formed the 14th Frigate Squadron. The lead ship INS Nilgiri was the first major warship to be built in India and was built in collaboration with Yarrow Shipbuilders of the United Kingdom.
The Abhay-class corvettes of the Indian Navy are the customised variants of the Soviet Pauk-class corvettes. The class was primarily intended for coastal patrol and anti-submarine warfare. Last ship of the class is expected to be decommissioned till 2025.
INS Nilgiri (F33) was the lead ship of her class of frigates. Commissioned on 3 June 1972 into the Indian Navy, she was decommissioned in 1996.
The Indo-Pakistani Naval War of 1971 refers to the maritime military engagements between the Indian Navy and the Pakistan Navy during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The series of naval operations began with the Indian Navy's exertion of pressure on Pakistan from the Indian Ocean, while the Indian Army and Indian Air Force moved in to choke Pakistani forces operating in East Pakistan on land. Indian naval operations comprised naval interdiction, air defence, ground support, and logistics missions.
Arnala class was an Indian designation for the Petya III-class vessels of the Indian Navy.
INS Karanj (S23) is the third submarine of the first batch of six Kalvari-class submarines for the Indian Navy. It is a diesel-electric attack submarine based on the Scorpène class, designed by French naval defence and energy group DCNS and manufactured by Mazagon Dock Limited, an Indian shipyard in Mumbai. The submarine was launched on 31 January 2018, delivered to Indian Navy on 15 February 2021, commissioned on 10 March 2021 in Mumbai in presence of Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh and Admiral (Retired) VS Shekhawat.
The Western Fleet is a Naval fleet of the Indian Navy. It is known as the 'Sword Arm' of the Indian Navy. It is headquartered at Mumbai, Maharashtra on the west coast of India. It is a part of the Western Naval Command and is responsible for the naval forces in the Arabian Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean.
The Eastern Fleet is a Naval fleet of the Indian Navy. It is known as the 'Sword Arm' of the Eastern Naval Command and called the Sunrise Fleet. It is headquartered at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on the east coast of India. It is a part of the Eastern Naval Command and is responsible for the naval forces in the Bay of Bengal and parts of the Indian Ocean.
Vice Admiral Elenjikal Chandy Kuruvila, PVSM, AVSM was a former Flag officer in the Indian Navy. He was the Fleet commander of the Western Fleet during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, for which he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal. He later led the Southern Naval Area and then served as the Chairman and Managing Director of Mazagon Dock Limited.
Rear Admiral Arun Auditto, AVSM, NM was a Flag Officer in the Indian Navy. He was decorated with a gallantry award during the Liberation of Goa. A pioneer submariner in the Indian Navy, he was the commissioning Commanding Officer of the Kalvari-class submarine INS Kursura (S20), which he commanded during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. He later commanded the submarine base INS Virbahu and the Whitby-class frigate INS Trishul (F143). After promotion to flag rank, he served as the Fortress Commander Andaman and Nicobar (FORTAN) and as the first Flag Officer Submarines, before retiring in 1988.
The Flag Officer Submarines (FOSM) is the single-point class authority of submarines in the Indian Navy. A two star Officer holding the rank of Rear Admiral, the FOSM is responsible for submarine safety, submarine training, maintenance and operating schedules and operational readiness inspections. The current FOSM is Rear Admiral K. Venkatraman who assumed office on 1 April 2023.
The Commodore Commanding Submarines (West) is an operational appointment in the Indian Navy. The COMCOS (W) is the commander of the all submarines and allied units of Western Naval Command. Based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, the COMCOS is also the Commanding Officer of the submarine base INS Vajrabahu. Currently, there are two COMCOS in the Indian Navy, COMCOS (East) and COMCOS (West). The COMCOS (W) is a one star officer holding the rank of Commodore. The current COMCOS (W) is Commodore Sriram Amur.